Inman Mills gets county tax break for $45 million worth of improvements

Tuesday

Mar 17, 1998 at 12:01 AM

ERIC MITCHELL

The Spartanburg County Council may grant Inman Mills a tax break on $45 million worth of improvements to its plants here.

Inman Mills will upgrade buildings and equipment at its two plants in Inman and three plants in Enoree, said Vice President H.L. Price Jr. The County Council unanimously agreed Monday to lower the tax rate on those improvements from 10.5 percent to 6 percent. Council members will vote two more times and hold a public hearing before the lower tax rate is adopted. The tax break is available through a state economic incentive program adopted in 1990 and revamped in 1996. "We're committed to protecting our 1,200 jobs and that can only be done by improving our production and improving our quality," he said. Price said he could not give details on the expansion plans because the company is still negotiating several contracts. The proposed $45 million expansion is Inman Mills' second major project in the past couple years. Last year, the company spent $31 million improving its Enoree facility. The company remodeled the weaving equipment, installed new equipment that starches thread before it's woven into cloth, and improved the environmental protection equipment associated with the starching process. Inman Mills did not seek a tax break on the improvements made at Enoree.